ear tunnel
1. A short, cylindrical piece of jewelry that is fitted to one's earlobe, stretching it in such a way as to create a visible opening through the flesh. I'm in support of all forms of body modification, but the thought of getting an ear tunnel still gives me the willies. I don't want my kids to do anything like that—piercings, ear tunnels, tattoos, forget it. I don't want them doing something in their youth that they really regret. Of course I never had an ear tunnel. I didn't even get my ear pierced until I was in my 20s!
2. The visible opening through the flesh of the earlobe that results from such a piercing. I think she tried to stretch her ear tunnel too fast, and now it's pretty badly infected. I never had any interest in widening my ear tunnel. I'm fine with a traditional piercing! A: "I don't think your ear tunnel is supposed to tear like that." B: "Ah! Should I go to the emergency room?"
light at the end of the tunnel
A sign that something difficult or unpleasant is almost at an end. I've been working on this book for over a year, but I can finally see the light at the end of the tunnel. Now that the doctors have been able to diagnose what's wrong with me, there is finally light at the end of the tunnel.
like light at the end of a tunnel
Signifying a hopeful end, conclusion, or resolution to some particularly difficult, unpleasant, or arduous journey or process. After not knowing what was wrong with Bill for so long, finally getting a diagnosis feels like light at the end of a tunnel for us. I've been working on this book for nearly four years, so finishing the final chapter has been like light at the end of a tunnel.
see a light at the end of the tunnel
To conceptualize or foresee an end to something difficult or unpleasant; to be relatively near to the end or conclusion of some problem or difficulty. I've been working on this book for over a year, but I can finally see a light at the end of the tunnel. Now that the doctors have been able to diagnose what's wrong with me, we might finally be able to see a light at the end of the tunnel.
see the light at the end of the tunnel
To conceptualize or foresee an end to something difficult or unpleasant; to be relatively near to the end or conclusion of some problem or difficulty. I've been working on this book for over a year, but I can finally see the light at the end of the tunnel. Now that the doctors have been able to diagnose what's wrong with me, we might finally be able to see the light at the end of the tunnel.
tunnel through (something)
1. To create a tunnel through something. It took the workers nearly 12 months to finish tunneling through the mountain.
2. To dig or bore through something. The mole has wide, spade-like claws that it used to dig through the soil. The outer walls of the prison were so friable that the inmate was able to tunnel through them using nothing but spoons he stole from the cafeteria.
3. To force a path through some dense group or collection of people or things. I had to tunnel through the crowd to reach the exit. Tunneling through that thick underbrush took much longer than we had anticipated.
tunnel under (something)
To dig a passageway underneath someone or something. We've had a real problem with groundhogs tunneling under our lawn. The only way we'll get past those guards is by tunneling under them.
tunnel vision
1. A condition in which one's field of vision narrows to a point directly in front of one's eyes, without the ability to see peripherally. I started getting tunnel vision from such a rapid change in altitude.
2. A tendency, habit, or conscious decision to only focus one's energy or attention on a single particular thing or aspect, without regard for anything or anyone else. Tom tends to get tunnel vision when he starts working on a new project, so I wouldn't be surprised if we don't hear from him for a while. The only way I can complete my novels is if I have total tunnel vision while writing, which has had some disastrous effects on my relationships.
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms. © 2024 Farlex, Inc, all rights reserved.
tunnel through something
to make a tunnel or passageway through something or a group of people. Roger had to tunnel through the crowd to get to the rest room. The workers tunneled through the soft soil to reach the buried cable.
tunnel under someone or something
to dig a tunnel under someone or something. All the time she was standing in the yard talking about the moles, they were tunneling under her. They took many months to tunnel under the English Channel.
tunnel vision
1. Lit. a visual impairment wherein one can only see what is directly ahead of oneself. I have tunnel vision, so I have to keep looking from side to side.
2. Fig. an inability to recognize other ways of doing things or thinking about things. The boss really has tunnel vision about sales and marketing. He sees no reason to change anything.
McGraw-Hill Dictionary of American Idioms and Phrasal Verbs. © 2002 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.
light at the end of the tunnel
The end of a difficult situation or task, the solution to a difficult problem. For example, It's taken three years to effect this merger, but we're finally seeing the light at the end of the tunnel . This metaphoric expression dates from the 1800s, but became widespread only in the mid-1900s.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer. Copyright © 2003, 1997 by The Christine Ammer 1992 Trust. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
light at the end of the tunnel
COMMON If there is light at the end of the tunnel, there is hope that a difficult situation might be coming to an end. After horrific times we are seeing light at the end of the tunnel. People feel hopeless. They don't see any light at the end of the tunnel.
tunnel vision
COMMON If someone has tunnel vision, they use all their energy and skill on something that is important to them and ignore other important things. Unfortunately, government departments tend to exhibit extreme tunnel vision. It is often beyond their capacity to appreciate or support something if it benefits more than one department. Note: This expression can also be used to show admiration for someone who has achieved a lot by concentrating on a single thing. They always say that you have to have tunnel vision to be a champion. You can't have any outside distractions at all. Note: You can also use tunnel-vision before a noun. The experts sometimes have a bureaucratic, tunnel-vision view of their mission. Note: Tunnel vision is a medical condition in which someone can only see things that are immediately in front of them, and cannot see things that are to the side.
Collins COBUILD Idioms Dictionary, 3rd ed. © HarperCollins Publishers 2012
light at the end of the tunnel
a long-awaited indication that a period of hardship or adversity is nearing an end.Farlex Partner Idioms Dictionary © Farlex 2017
(see the) ˌlight at the end of the ˈtunnel
(see) the possibility of success, happiness, etc. in the future, especially after a long period of difficulty: Business has been bad recently, but I think we’re beginning to see some light at the end of the tunnel.(have) ˌtunnel ˈvision
(disapproving) (have) an interest in only one small part of something instead of the whole of it: He’s got tunnel vision about music. He thinks only the classics are worth listening to.Farlex Partner Idioms Dictionary © Farlex 2017
light at the end of the tunnel
The prospect of success, relief, or escape after strenuous effort.
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
light at the end of a tunnel, (see) the
A solution emerges at long last. This metaphor, evoking the end of a long, dark mining or railroad tunnel, came into widespread use only in the mid-twentieth century. It was used by President John F. Kennedy in a 1962 press conference on the Vietnam War and became common throughout that conflict. However, the image was used nearly a century earlier in a letter by English novelist George Eliot, and the expression also appeared in a letter from J. Middleton Murry to his wife, Katherine Mansfield (1922): “I begin to feel that the horror may move away and that there is a big round spot of real daylight at the end of the tunnel.”
tunnel vision
A very narrow view, inability to see beyond a limited viewpoint. The term, dating from the mid-1900s, transfers the physiological inability to see peripheral objects to a mental outlook. For example, “Preble had the ghetto mind and the tunnel vision of a committed social climber” (T. Barling, Goodbye Piccadilly, 1980).
The Dictionary of Clichés by Christine Ammer Copyright © 2013 by Christine Ammer